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The mayor of the small town of Coccaglio, located in the northern Italian region of Lombardy has launched a campaign to "clean-up" the city of immigrants, ahead of the Christian holidays next month, Italian media said on Wednesday. The town council has dubbed the operation "White Christmas".

"There is no crime here. We only want to start cleaning up," said the mayor of Coccaglio, Franco Claretti.

The "White Christmas" campaign is being spearheaded by Claretti and six town councillors from Italy's ruling conservative People of Freedom party and its junior coalition partner, the anti-immigrant Northern League party.

"For me, Christmas is not the holiday of hospitality, but instead that of the Christian tradition, of our identity," said Coccaglio's councillor in charge of security, Claudio Abiendi, from the Northern League, quoted by Italian daily La Repubblica.

The operation will see police officers going to every home in the town to make sure its residents have their immigration documents in order, otherwise they will lose their residence and risk deportation.